Where this isn't the first time that I have been included in the Storque in one way or another, it's is my favorite feature. What the brief article states is exactly what I set out to do - I wanted to bring traditional western tooling into the 21st century. It is a craft that many have forgotten, or think is outdated, and it deserves a revival!

Thursday, June 11, 2009

So I have to laugh at myself because now it's been darned near three months since my last post. I have no excuse, really. I switched jobs, but I'm still working full-time. I just now have Mondays off. I guess what it comes down to is, I have been busy enjoying myself. Life, as it should be.

Well, the news around these parts is twofold - the first exciting thing is that I have been doing a series of collaborations with Andes Cruz (andescruz.etsy.com) but maybe that's not such new news. It has been happening for a few months, but right now there is a large line of buckles in my studio waiting for belts to match. I will be working on these in the next few weeks and you should see many belt and buckle combinations to come.

The second piece of big news is that I just finished my very first fellowship application ever. Writing the resume component was a little, well, humbling since I really don't have an artistic career to speak of, which is fine because I like to consider myself a crafter. I always want my work to be used, abused, and enjoyed, and I think to do that (at least the first two) it really has to be craft. So, anyway, the resume fit on a page, and the entire bibliography section was blogs that people were nice enough to feature me in. So, a big huge THANK YOU to all you bloggers who were nice enough to give me a shout-out. There are/were a lot of you, and I really do appreciate you. Not only would I not have the customer/fan base I do without you, but I'd have no bibliography section in my resume!

I also wrote an artist's statement, which I will post at a later date. And, with the help of my facebook friends, selected ten works to submit with the application. In no particular order, here they are (because I promised I would share). Enjoy.

Monday, March 23, 2009

I can't believe it's been almost two months since my last post! The time is just flying by, and I haven't been able to turn my ideas into products as quickly as I would like (but I seem perpetually plagued by that).

One project that I have been working on, slowly but surely, is converting my purse into a smaller, more manageable, version. For the last few years I've carried the Rosa messenger, but the problem with carrying a big bag, for me anyway, is that I tend to just cram extra junk in it. I'm always surprised - the inside of my purse tends to look like the backseat of my car! I was having the same problem with my wallet - months worth of receipts would occupy the space where my cash was supposed to be, until I couldn't properly close the wallet anymore. So, I figured, the less space I have, the less space there is for junk, and switched my larger wallet for this:

I call it the "June" pattern, and it perfectly holds all my necessary things without leaving too much extra space for junk. Here is what the inside looks like:

The best part is that it fits easily into any and all of my pockets! And, it, of course, doesn't take up much space in my purse. Now, if I could only find the time to make myself a new purse...

Wednesday, January 28, 2009

About six or so years I found a little antique locket at a mall antique store. Not my usual haunt for unique jewelry, but it was too beautiful to resist. It was a glass locket that twisted open, so I could add a photo or two and they would be visible when I was wearing it. It didn't look much like a locket - more like a pendant where the image was trapped inside glass. My boyfriend bought the necklace for me, and I added a rose from the rose incense on one side, and a picture of my kitty on the other side. I strung it on a multi-strand sterling chain that had been sitting in my jewelry chest for years, but I rarely wore. They were the perfect combination. I wore the necklace every day.

I have recently been thinking about trying my hand in jewelry - I am really interested by the prospect of combining silver and leather. My friend Andes sent some catalogs to me so I could find some silver pieces to inlay leather into. What I found I couldn't have been more pleased with - little glass lockets, just like the one that I still have (and love). They also had a multi-strand sterling chain, similar to the one that I put my locket on. I immediately knew what to do - I had to make some leather pieces for the lockets. Thinking of Valentines day, I started with a sacred heart, and three others. Here is the Charger pattern piece:

This is another one - in the Jasmine pattern with a tiny hummingbird:

I will have more listed in my Etsyshop this week -- there is a round sugar skull necklace and a round one with an owl. I'm presently working on the square lockets, but need to give my eyes a break from all of the tiny work! There are a few other inlay pieces coming, including rings and a bracelet, that I'm quite excited to share!